ICFA Oral History Initiative

The Image Collections and Fieldwork Archives Oral History Initiative is now available online. Each interview is represented with a page that includes a brief biographical sketch of the interviewee, a video of the interview, and corresponding transcripts (when available). All videos are available in full length, both on ICFA’s website and through Vimeo.

ICFA launched its Oral History Initiative in 2011, with the support of the Dumbarton Oaks Archives (DOA). Interviews focus on individuals related to ICFA’s holdings, whether they participated in fieldwork or research projects documented by the collections, or managed the department’s diverse collections over the years. The initiative’s main and ongoing goal is to gather information, such as firsthand descriptions of fieldwork or personal recollections of key individuals, that may not otherwise be captured in documents or photographs.

The ICFA Oral History Initiative complements the DOA’s Oral History Project. While DOA interviews focus on affiliates’ memories of Dumbarton Oaks and their perceptions of how it has changed over time, ICFA’s oral history interviews center on targeted questions about the people and fieldwork projects represented in ICFA’s collections. Together, these interviews provide a vivid portrait of the institution and the remarkable individuals who have participated in its myriad activities over the past seventy-five years.